Udupi private bus operator stops services following owner’s death; hundreds put to hardship

Udupi's Sri Lakshmi Express bus service halts after owner’s death, disrupting travel for hundreds, including students during II PUC exams.

Hundreds of general public, including PUC students in remote areas around Mandarthi and Hebri in Udupi district were put to great hardship as Sri Lakshmi Express, a private bus service, stopped operations following its owner’s death on Tuesday (March 17, 2026).

Nonagenarian M. Vittal Shetty founded Sri Lakshmi Express, and operated out of Mandarthi. Following his death on March 17, a few social media posts announced that the buses operated by him would be off the roads that day.

While officials, the regional transport officer and senior police department officers, denied any knowledge of the buses temporarily ceasing operation, transport industry insiders confirmed that Sri Lakshmi Express buses, in fact, did not operate on March 17. “Late Shetty and his family operated at least 30 buses as stage carriages,” said one source in the industry.

While very few Sri Lakshmi Express buses operated on long routes, that is, between Kundapura-Udpupi-Mangaluru, they predominantly had a presence in and around Mandarthi in Brahmavara taluk. Services operated between Kundapura-Mandarthi-Hebri, Udupi-Brahmavara-Mandarthi-Hebri and many interior routes around these hubs.

As residents of remote villages, including students, solely depended on these buses for their travel needs, abrupt cancellation of the services severely affected the travellers. As the second PU exam was in progress, students were a stressed lot and had to be dropped to the exam centres by personal vehicles or autorickshaws at many places, reports reaching Mangaluru said.

A transport industry source said the owners could at least have operated the morning services in the interest of the student community. Moreover, the conditions stipulated by the transport department while issuing permits do not allow abrupt cancellation of the services, the source said.